Paris, February 11 (RHC)-- A new poll shows that French President Francois Hollande's approval rating has fallen to below 20 percent for the first time since his election in 2012.

The result of the poll, which was conducted jointly by TNS Sofres, Sopra group and Le Figaro magazine, reveals that Hollande's rating sunk to 19 percent, a new low in his popularity. The AFP press agency says the poll showed that 78 percent of the French say they do not trust the president.

It was the first poll since revelations that Hollande was having an affair with actress Julie Gayet. The French president's latest misery started last month when the Closer magazine published a seven-page "special report" complete with implicating photographs of the 59-year-old president. After the revelations, Hollande confirmed his separation from his partner of seven years, Valerie Trierweiler.

Jean-Francois Cope, leader of the center-right Union for a Popular Movement, deplored Hollande for exposing the presidential office to ridicule and questioned his judgment.

Another major source of Hollande's unpopularity is public anger over the high unemployment in the country, with over three million French people currently looking for work.